The Information

Margo Georgiadis, Google's Americas sales chief. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google Sales Leaders Vie for Top Post

By Amir Efrati · Aug 8, 2014 7:01am PDT

The race is on for one of the most important non-product jobs in tech: chief of sales and business development at Google. Nikesh Arora, who shocked much of Google’s 15,000-plus sales organization two weeks ago by announcing his departure from the position, leaves behind a critical job opening as the unit tackles new challenges like mobile... The race is on for one of the most important non-product jobs in tech: chief of sales and...

A user trying the Oculus Rift developer kit headset. Photo by Bloomberg.

Facebook in Talks with Hollywood on ‘Oculus Experiences’

By Tom Dotan · Aug 7, 2014 12:17pm PDT · 3 comments

The Oculus Rift virtual reality headset’s first target market might have been video games—an obvious area of interest for new parent company Facebook. But it may soon go Hollywood too. In recent weeks, Facebook representatives have been meeting with executives at all the major film studios as well as with individual directors about... The Oculus Rift virtual reality headset’s first target market might have been video...

Photo by Google.

Google’s Quick-Delivery Service Faces Cost Problem

By Amir Efrati · Aug 4, 2014 7:03am PDT · 2 comments

There’s no question Google’s foray into delivering goods to homes and offices, called Google Shopping Express, has been a hit with online shoppers who have tried it. But GSX, as it’s known inside of Google, remains in a precarious position even as it gets more funding and expands beyond the San Francisco Bay Area, New York and... There’s no question Google’s foray into delivering goods to homes and offices, called...

Apple CEO Tim Cook and Senior Vice President Eddy Cue. Photo by Bloomberg.

Apple’s TV Push Stalls as Partners Hesitate

By Jessica E. Lessin and Amir Efrati · Jul 30, 2014 11:18am PDT · 1 comment

Apple CEO Tim Cook and Senior Vice President Eddy Cue. Photo by Bloomberg.

Apple’s TV Push Stalls as Partners Hesitate

By Jessica E. Lessin and Amir Efrati · Jul 30, 2014 11:18am PDT · 1 comment

Those waiting for Apple to start selling its long-discussed, all-in-one box for accessing live and on-demand television are going to have to keep waiting, The Information has learned. Apple engineers who are working on aspects of the device have been told by their bosses not to expect a launch this year and are working off timelines that assume... Those waiting for Apple to start selling its long-discussed, all-in-one box for accessing live...

Rick Osterloh, chief operating office of Motorola. Photo by Bloomberg.

Surprise Turnaround for Motorola Ahead of Lenovo Merger

By Amir Efrati · Jul 28, 2014 12:35pm PDT

For nearly the whole time Google has owned Motorola Mobility, many mobile-industry executives considered the handset maker to be a lost cause. That sentiment has changed, both inside and outside of Google, which is selling Motorola to China-based Lenovo Group. Motorola could double phone sales this year, according to internal projections.... For nearly the whole time Google has owned Motorola Mobility, many mobile-industry executives...

Apple CEO Tim Cook. Photo by Bloomberg.

Apple’s Mobile Wallet Talks Heat Up

By Amir Efrati · Jul 23, 2014 1:45pm PDT · 5 comments

Conversations between Apple and payments-industry companies have heated up in recent months, with several people briefed on the talks saying that Apple executives have discussed launching a mobile “wallet” as soon as this fall for people to use their iPhones to pay for goods in physical stores. Apple has long been expected to make... Conversations between Apple and payments-industry companies have heated up in recent months, with...

Samsung Vice Chairman Jay Y. Lee at Sun Valley a year ago. Photo by Bloomberg.

Smartwatches Drive New Wedge Between Samsung, Google

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jul 17, 2014 10:11am PDT

Tensions between Google and Samsung are escalating again—this time over wearables. Last week, in a tense private meeting at the Allen & Co. conference in Sun Valley, Google CEO Larry Page told Samsung Vice Chairman Jay Y. Lee that he was frustrated Samsung was investing more in smartwatches running Samsung’s Tizen operating... Tensions between Google and Samsung are escalating again—this time over wearables. Last...

Google's Android chief, Sundar Pichai, introduces Android One in June. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google Plans India Ad Blitz in Smartphone Bid

By Amir Efrati · Jul 16, 2014 7:21am PDT

Google's Android chief, Sundar Pichai, introduces Android One in June. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google Plans India Ad Blitz in Smartphone Bid

By Amir Efrati · Jul 16, 2014 7:21am PDT

Google is planning a major spending effort on marketing its new Android One phones in India, in an ambitious play into a challenging but potentially huge market for smartphones. The company, which announced the new Android One specifications for phones targeted at the developing market in June, has told potential partners that it would... Google is planning a major spending effort on marketing its new Android One phones in India,...

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer. Photo by Bloomberg.

Yahoo Grabbed ‘Community’ from Hulu in Last-Minute Bid

By Tom Dotan · Jul 15, 2014 7:05am PDT

Yahoo made waves late last month when it paid tens of millions of dollars for a sixth season of the cancelled NBC sitcom “Community.” But previously-unreported backroom negotiations show how badly the company wanted the series, as it continues to pay top dollar for flashy video programming that, for now, generates little revenue. In... Yahoo made waves late last month when it paid tens of millions of dollars for a sixth season of...

YouTube chief Susan Wojcicki. Photo by TechCrunch.

YouTube Revenue Lags Forecasts as Competition Mounts

By Amir Efrati · Jul 7, 2014 8:33am PDT

In the fall of 2012, then-YouTube CEO Salar Kamangar and his lieutenants set an audacious goal: increase the collective “watch time” for YouTube videos by an order of magnitude, to a billion hours per day, by the end of 2016. That would represent about 20% of all the time people spend watching television. The billion-hour target, employees were... In the fall of 2012, then-YouTube CEO Salar Kamangar and his lieutenants set an audacious goal:...

A scene from the AMC hit "Mad Men." Courtesy photo.

AMC Plans Novel Move into Online TV

By Amir Efrati · Jun 18, 2014 8:14am PDT

AMC Networks, which has vaulted into the first tier of TV programmers in recent years with shows such as “Mad Men” and “Breaking Bad,” is preparing to break from the long-established cable television business model and launch several subscription video websites, according to two people who have been involved in the... AMC Networks, which has vaulted into the first tier of TV programmers in recent years with shows...

Vevo CEO Rio Caraeff. Photo by Bloomberg.

Vevo on the Block after Failed Bid for Independence

By Amir Efrati and Tom Dotan · Jun 4, 2014 8:38am PDT · 1 comment

Vevo CEO Rio Caraeff. Photo by Bloomberg.

Vevo on the Block after Failed Bid for Independence

By Amir Efrati and Tom Dotan · Jun 4, 2014 8:38am PDT · 1 comment

Vevo, the leading purveyor of online music videos and one of the largest Web video services in the world, is for sale: the company and its bankers have begun taking meetings with a veritable who’s who of media and tech companies that have signaled they could be buyers. It’s a disappointing turn of events for a company that once had... Vevo, the leading purveyor of online music videos and one of the largest Web video services in...

Apple senior vice president and music honcho Eddy Cue. Photo by Bloomberg.

Pandora in the Crosshairs as Apple Boosts iTunes Radio

By Amir Efrati · May 30, 2014 8:34am PDT

As the online music world focuses on Apple’s acquisition of Beats Electronics, a series of new initiatives at Apple’s iTunes Radio service could also have a significant impact on the digital music business and especially the market leader, Pandora Media. In a move that strikes at the heart of Pandora’s advertising business,... As the online music world focuses on Apple’s acquisition of Beats Electronics, a series of...

Google CEO Larry Page. Photo by Bloomberg.

A Space Race in Silicon Valley

By Amir Efrati · May 27, 2014 2:00pm PDT

As Web companies such as Google and Facebook ramp up efforts to connect the world to their services, they are increasingly looking to the skies—and higher. At Google, several signs point to satellites. The company last month hired Brian Holz, who was chief technology officer at O3b Networks, which has launched special satellites to try to... As Web companies such as Google and Facebook ramp up efforts to connect the world to their...

Nest co-founder Tony Fadell Credit: Jan Haas/DLD

Google Eyes Home Security, Dropcam

By Jessica E. Lessin · May 26, 2014 5:00pm PDT

Google’s Nest division is plotting a move into the home-security market and has considered acquiring connected camera-maker Dropcam to accelerate the push, according to several people close to Google. The status of any talks between Google and Dropcam, which makes a $150 camera that streams footage to phones and computers, isn’t... Google’s Nest division is plotting a move into the home-security market and has considered...

Alibaba headquarters. Photo by Bloomberg.

Alibaba Mulls AppNexus Stake as U.S. Strategy Takes Shape

By Amir Efrati · May 22, 2014 2:44pm PDT

Alibaba headquarters. Photo by Bloomberg.

Alibaba Mulls AppNexus Stake as U.S. Strategy Takes Shape

By Amir Efrati · May 22, 2014 2:44pm PDT

In the latest sign of Alibaba Group’s aspirations to be a major player beyond its home base of China, the soon-to-be-public Web giant is considering making an investment in U.S.-based advertising technology firm AppNexus, according to people briefed on the recent discussions. According to one U.S. Internet executive who was briefed by... In the latest sign of Alibaba Group’s aspirations to be a major player beyond its home base...

Google CEO Larry Page. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google Preps Plan to Offer Business WiFi Networks

By Amir Efrati · May 21, 2014 10:16am PDT

As part of its broad push to get more people using its revenue-generating Web services, Google has developed plans to offer heavily subsidized Wi-Fi network hardware and software to small and medium-sized retail businesses, according to a confidential document reviewed by The Information and a person briefed on the project. The planned offering,... As part of its broad push to get more people using its revenue-generating Web services, Google...

Byliner Hits a Rough Patch as Co-Founder Resigns

By Jonathan Weber · May 21, 2014 7:51am PDT

One of the most prominent companies in the much-hyped niche of long-form narrative publishing has hit a rough patch, with its co-founder and editor-in-chief departing amid investor efforts to find a new path for the company. Launched in 2011 as a digital publisher of top-shelf non-fiction stories that were shorter than books but... One of the most prominent companies in the much-hyped niche of long-form narrative publishing has...

Comcast CEO Brian Roberts. Photo by Bloomberg.

As TV Battles Heat Up, Comcast Launches New Web Delivery Service

By Amir Efrati · May 19, 2014 7:38am PDT

As regulatory battles and mega-mergers roil the media business, Comcast is preparing to offer a new service for Web content companies that will enable them to bypass network middlemen and deliver their services directly to Comcast Internet customers. The new service allows companies publish their content inside of Comcast’s network so... As regulatory battles and mega-mergers roil the media business, Comcast is preparing to offer a...

Qihoo CEO Hongyi Zhou. Photo by Bloomberg.

China’s Crafty Qihoo Goes International

By Amir Efrati and Eric Newcomer · May 13, 2014 7:42am PDT

Qihoo CEO Hongyi Zhou. Photo by Bloomberg.

China’s Crafty Qihoo Goes International

By Amir Efrati and Eric Newcomer · May 13, 2014 7:42am PDT

Alibaba Group may be the talk of Silicon Valley as it prepares for an IPO, but another Chinese Web giant is quietly putting down roots in the Bay Area as it looks to develop new products for Western markets. Qihoo 360 Technology, the fourth-largest Chinese Web company by market value, recently dispatched its 38-year-old chief engineer, Shu Cao,... Alibaba Group may be the talk of Silicon Valley as it prepares for an IPO, but another Chinese...